Tasks to Complete Before Course Start

If this is the first course you've taught online (in this environment), this is what you should do:

  1. Identify tech support available
  2. Take an online course as a student
  3. Familiarize yourself with the tools and support available

If this is the first time you've taught this course online:

  1. Pilot the course - with colleagues and potential students
  2. Prepare a "back up plan" for technology/server failure

If you are assembling (some of) the elements of an online course that you or others are going to teach:

  1. Pilot the course - with colleagues and potential students
  2. Back up the course content
  3. Prepare or determine support mechanisms for students and instructors.
  4. Ensure workload and assignments are reasonable, but challenging
  5. Verify that copyright/IP concerns have been addressed

Things you have to do for every course even if none of the above apply:

  1. Prepare learners - send out welcome emails
  2. Test links
  3. Test assumptions about student readiness and technology access (i.e. are some students on 56k? if so, how will video work? or even complex activities?)
  4. Plan a course initiation activity - phone conference, chat, in person...this activity should focus on connecting students with each other...and create a degree of comfort
   « Back Page 8 of 9 Next »